Electric switch



, f UNI-TED STA Patented lVIiar.` 17K, 1931 WILMAM o. NAGL, or AURoRaoREGoN VELECTRIC SWITCH vparticularly to an electric switch that is especially adaptedforuse with stop lights for 5 automobiles.

As is well-known to those skilledl in the art, `many automobiles areequipped with a smallsignal light in 'the. rear of the mail chine, the light Loften being Vprovided with 1C -the wordStop? Vor with al representation of a handV or some other means, yso that when the brake' of the automobile is applied, the

stop4 light' or signal light will liash and thus warn the vdrivers of the oncoming machines.

The electric kswitch is .connected in a convenient manner to the brake .pedal orto `the clutch pedal,` the idea being that the moment the brake? pedal is'depressed or the clutch.

pedal released, the-electric switchl will im- 23Vmediately functionk and .will lcontinue to function throughout the pressure on the brake or clutch pedal,

-It is therefore necessary will immediately malreproper contact on lpressurerof, the 'footpedal and that the contact --remain throughout the entire movement of the pedal, so certain means must be y 301' provided that willallow for the entire throw ofthe brake pedal, and still retain the con-V tact. I' 1 Still 'another provide a'switch'wherein a rolling and wip- 35?- ing contactismade so that there will be nov possibility .of the' severalcontacts'corroding, which is-often-thelcase with the switches vrnow in use.

xsuuanether. bjeas'of'theinvenaon ig to JLG-'provide a small electricalswitch for stopv lightisignalsl wherein'fan arm is lto-be mechanically attached to thel brake pedalso ythat the Y'moment itis depressed a rolling electrical .contactis' made betweenthe two -members While a furtherdepressionof.the

pedal will cause one ofthe contacts to slideV or'wipe the othercontact, whiley still a fur'- ther depressionwill cause the yactuatedcon-l v tact to'again have arolling motion, thus assuringia good mechanical Contact as well.

Application-filed July 29,

invention 'relates to ynew anduse'ful improvements 1n electricV switches and more i only to release when' the pressure is removed. Y i that some ar`V i rangement be provided wherein the switch object-ofthe invention'is to 1927. seriai No. 209,257.

VWiring of automobile circuits.

4Still another object of the inventionis to provide a small electrical switch that is easyv to construct, neatVin-appearance and relatively cheapy to manufacturers. i

With theseand other objects in view, the invention 4consistsof new and novel arrangements and a combination of parts aswillY be hereinafter more fully described" andv pointed out in claims. f

Referringnow to the drawings'showing a .preferred embodiment lof my invention:

Y Figure 1 is a side-elevation showing the' vswitch attached to a metal support,

Figure 2 is an'endview of the same, Flgure 3 is view similar to Figurel but taken from the oppOsiteside,

TES PATENIDFFICE. ,c

Figure l is an end viewsimilar to Figure Qbut taken from the opposite end,.a'nd,the

switch open,

VFigureis a switch attached to awooden" support,

Figure 6 is afragmentary view showing` the moveable l contact arm' in fits nearly stage yof movement,

Figure `7 is asimilar view with moveable i armina more advanced stage of'V movement,

and? n l. i

Figure 8 is a Asimilar view showing the linal position-of thejmovable arm.

Referring now more specifically to the several views, there isV shown asmall metal@ casing, having the sidel, the bottom portion 2, and thek upwardly extending other side 3` v.which -is inthe` form of a supporting lip;

as may also be seen' there are small extenbolts`5 may be provided to fasten the casing to the support 6. If the support 6 is wood, noinsulation between the casing l andthe ytop-plan view, ,showing the Y sions l at theV ends. of .the casings so that i may bei. fastened thereto and'also. fastened to the main operating arm or leverY 11, as`

may be seen in Figure 1.

Near the upper end of"tl'iis-'a'rmf11is` a small link 12, which is preferably Jr'ormed of hard rubber or any other dielectric, there being small holes13-in theW arm 11 so that a small pin lll may pass thru one of these' holes and: on which Ypin will fbe= placed orsecured/the small link.: ln other words the link may be fastened within certain limitsonthe uppe'rfendot the arm to allow for. theth-.ro-wofthe arm 11 andrthe brake pedal (not shown). The little link isiprovided with hole- 15atthe `outer end so `that .cable or` awire` (notzshown) may be-.used.to. connect thislink to the brake pedal..

The lower end of'the actuatingarm 1l is intlreform odia huby y16 and is designed to p'ass-.thrutheoney side of lthecasing and also extendithruthe otherrsidezof lipz as may `be seen in Figure 2.

Asn operation therefore'zoffthe arm llwill cause thefsrnall hub 161sto oscillate or partly rotate. @n thishub'lGzis a small collarl which :collar is provided intermediate .of its length with a small projection 13.

This collarmaybe` sweated vor otherwise secure'df on the hub 41) and isslightlylarger.l

int-.cross .sectionf than the small openings in the side andcli-pgrso that aiter'ther hulbfand` collar .is :fitted within: the .casing andA the lip fb'entnin; place, there will be no lateral movement of thehuband collarwhen the,

arm 11 is-actuated.

- Supported over.- the small lip or ear 18:

is a small curved Contact arm or' contact member "19, .the upper end: '20 being; struck from aasli'ghtly.: different center; whileA the lower4 endrhas the `over lapped; sides: 21 1 so thatta rsmall shaft` or pintle 22: may i pass L thru these overlapping sides 21,,the pintlein= .turn: being.A supported in the heretoiiorementlonedear 18.;

The entire actuating contact arm 19 may.l

bereut4 from a singlepie'ceofwbrass, or other J desired metahthe. :sides 21 being, pressed in-.

wardly` as shown inz the .drawing 'so vthat :the

stand the usage that it isput to.

Securedito the collar 17isva.:smallsprinzgH 23 ,Whileithe other fend of thespring1is com-v pressed against the `inner surtacebf .the arm'.`

19,l `as may tbe seen: in? several views.

Referring now. for the ..moment to Figa; 8., itwill be seemthat from `the.-upperedge-ct thefsldefy 1 off: they casing, there fisgprovidedV the integral top 24 which is formed by simply bending over a piece of the sheet metal o'f which the casing is formed. Also, there are two small integral outstanding ears 25 to limit the throw of the arm 11 in either direction,

Beneath the top 24 there is placed an insulating strip 26A and 'fastened to this insulating strip is a slightly yieldable or flexible metal strip 27 that is provided with a downwardly extending contact arm 28. This contacting arm is preferably Jiormed of'b'rass, as brass is a good electric conductor. As may be seen in Fig. 3 when the actuating or moveable contact arm 19 is in its rearwardmost position,y there will bea slight space 'between `the Contact' pcrtion-28` and the actuated arm 19.

Tn other words When the lever or'arm 11` is in its normal position the switch will be open.

As also may be seen in the several Iligures, there is a binding post 2 passing -thru the strip 27, the insulation2G,y and the topv 24, while a small insulating` washer 30" is-provided so that a wiremay be secured to this binding post 29, thus, to eonductthe current to 'the contacting-arm 28, but at-the saine time insulating the current Yfrom the casing.A

@are should be taken when inserting the binding post that it does not touch the metal ofthe top 2d and holes larger than thed-iameter offthe post will be providedso that this binding post-will not touch. the metal o'ii the casing.

A retainingbolt 31 isalso properly insulated from the top to help support the strip 27, and its intregal arm 28.

Near one end oi' the top is a binding post Bwvliich is fastened directly to the top but it;will be noticed thatthis is .not insulated from the casing, as the casingitsel'f forms part of the circuit.

Although lead-wires are not shown, it will 1 be understood thata wire will be connected from theA binding pest 29 to thebattery, and a wire will lead from the binding post 323V to the signal light (not shown) while the frame carries the current from the signal` light .to the batteryso that when theactuating `arm 19-contacts with the arm 28 the circuit will be completed` to `thus light the signal light.

Of' course the switch might be wired up in some other convenient'manner, the idear. being'as soon as the two contacts are Ito gether. the circuit ot' the signallightwill be completedn The operation of the'deviceisias follows: l

Supposingythe lsmall link 12-is .connected to the ooti edal. and the switchis properly Wired, a depression of the pedalwill cause the-actuatingyarm .11 to start initsfmovement and asrsoon as the hub 1G isaetuated on Iin other Words slightly revolved the jarln 19 will revolve from the position shown in Fig. '3 to the position shown in Fig. 6, thus f completing theelectrical circuit, and immediately lightingthesignal (not shown). A continued movement of the arm and rotation of the hub will cause the arm 19 to compress the small spring23whil`e still in contact `with the arm 28 to Vmove downwardly as shown in Fig. 7 thus wiping along the inner-surface' of the' arm 28. The small spring continues to be depressed Vbut after the ears 21 pass the horizontal line drawn thru the axis 4of the hub,` the lower end of' `arm 19 will pull away fromthe larm 28'but the pressure [of vthe small springY will cause the upper end 2O of the arm 19 to roll into contact with" the arm 28.

When the pressure onthe foot pedal is. reduced so that spring 10 cany return the main actuating armfll back to its normal posltion, of course the movement of the small actuating arm 19 is Just :reversed from what it was on its formermovement, `that is, ony

the start of the return movement of the arm l1 the upper en d 2() .of theV actuating arm `19 will start to. roll orrevolve away from the. arm 28, but as the upper end rolls away the central'portiony ofthe arm moves upwardly and wipes along the arm 28 and finally as the small earspass aboveV the horizontal line thru the axis of the hub the lower end of the arm will revolve away froml the arm 28andnally move entirely away therefrom as shown in Fig. 3.

From this it will be seen that-there is first a rolling contact, then a wiping contact and limited by one of the small earsx25.

lagain a rollingrcontact, both on` the actuating ofthedevice and on its return movement, contact being'of course kept throughvout the three motions.

From this it willv be seen that I have provided a switch that will operate instantvly on the actuation of the Varm 11 by the foot pedal and that the contact will be kept Vthroughout .the continued vmovement of the Aarm 11 .and also thru its return until'it has returned to its normal position which i It will also be seen thatl dueto the roll,-

ing "and wiping motion, there` will bel no kchance for any corrosionon lthe armw'28 or the arm` 19, thus, assuring a good eleci i trical contact `at all.V times throughout e the life ofthe switch.

'- Although. lI havedescribedthis switchas particularly adaptable for stoplight signals it willbe yunderstood and it' is my inten-V tion. that itA may beused in other electrical circuits wherein there isordinarily a chance of corros1onandwhere 1t is desired to pro- Y vide a switchwith a` rolling and wiping convtact to thus assure clean and bright contacting lpointsat all times. t Y

Again, for the vsake of clearness, I yhave shown the switch just in anopen housing,

so 'that the parts may be readily identied and their operation understood, butin actual practice there will be a further complete shell or coveringto keep vout vany dirt or foreignmatter and this shellmay also be filled with a very'light lubricant, so that all i of the moving partswill be well-oiled and operate freely. Y t

I am aware that it is old in the art to pro- Y vide a switch having a slight rolling and wiping Contact but I am not aware of any switch wherein a" contact is provided that'y first yrolls,`.then wipes and thenV .again rolls.

y. It is obvious Vthat those skilled in the. art mayV vary. the-details ofconstruction as well as the arrangement ofparts without depart-y ing from the scope of the aboveinvention.

Having thus described my invention, what I claimas new and' desire to secureby LettersPatent, is :1 l l 'el'. Anelectric switclncomprising a casing, having sides and top, an arm, having a hub extending thru the casing, Vmeans forr limiting the movement ofthefs'ai'd arm vin' the vopposite directions, an insulating link connected to the arm and adapted to be `connected* to a brake pedal, and a fixed contact member, 4a pivotally mounted second contact member on said hub, the member onsaid hub rolling and "sliding along the fixed vcontact'member both on'the forward and rearward-movement of said arm to v thereby change thepoint of contact on both the fixed and Vmoveable members throughout rearward movements of ivsaiclfarm. f 1 1 '2.' An electric switch comprising ya rela-- the forward and ble surface of the stationaryr memberfand adaptedto roll Vand slide thereon and folylowedfby a plane contact area adapted toV slide upon the-*planerkexible surface of the stationary member.

3. Anvelectric switch comprising a rela' .tively iiexible stationary `member having a contactsurfacejlying in a fiat plane, a relatively rigid memberkmounted for pivotal movement and having 'a contactsurface engageable with the contact ysurface of thez stationary member, the contact surface 'of' the pivoted member. having a curved area adapted tov initially engage the fiat plane iiexible surface of the stationary member and adaptedto roll and slide thereonvand followed by a plane contact area adapted to slide upon the plane kflexible surface, said pivoted member' having stiffenng ianges disposed acrossthe line of merger of the curved and planeareas.

el.. An electric switch comprising al rela- Jtively flexible stationary member having a ,contact surface lying in a flat plane, arelatively rigid member mounted for pivotal movement upon an axis spaced from the contact surface of the stationary member, said axis being disposed transversely of .said-surface and lying opposite the same said `pivoted member having a contact surface engageable with the contact surface of the stationary member, the contact surface ofthe pivoted member having a curved area 15.*; adapted to initially engage the planer flexible surface and adapted to roll and slide thereon and'followed by a flat plane contact yareaadapted to slide upon the plane flexible surface of the stationary member.

; 5. In an electric switch, a yieldable stationary` Contact member and a, coacting pivotedfcontact member mounted to swing at the side of said stationary member and capableof-engag-ing; tlie'same with an initial rocking and slidingmovement followed with a sliding contact movement over the initial point` of engagement and a final sliding movement overv said point of engagement.

; 6. An electric 'switch comprising a yieldable stationary contact member, a pivot support mounted at a point spaced from the side thereof, a carrier mounted'upon the support` for turning movementy about the j aXis thereof, a second Contact member pivoted upon the carrier at a point eccentric of the axis of the support and a spring interposed between the carrier' and the pivoted contact member, the pivoted contact 40,* member having a curved'surface disposed transversely across the pivot of said contactmember and capable of engaging a `point upon the yieldable stationary contact withr a rocking and sliding movement.

5. 7 A contact member for an electric switch consisting of a bodyv having at its sidev an engaging surface irregularly and conveXly curved from end to end, said member having means for pivotally supporting 50,1 the same located at a point spaced from the curved surface and lying between the ends thereof. l

In testimony whereof I affix my signature. 

